WALES In NZ: Jones relishing duel

17 June 2010 12:12pm

By Graeme Gillespie

An entire nation will be hoping Wales can upset the odds and beat firm favourites New Zealand at Carisbrook, Dunedin, on Saturday. But one player in particular has an added incentive to ensure Wales defeat Graham Henry's All Blacks.

Scarlets fly half Stephen Jones has yet to record a victory against the men in black from 11 attempts (three of which were with Clive Woodward's 2005 British and Irish Lions).

If Jones appears in both Tests against the All Blacks, he will take his tally to 13 against New Zealand, which will be a record for a European player. Currently the record stands at 12 which is held by French legend Serge Blanco who himself claimed just one victory during his illustrious career against the All Blacks.

Thirty-two-year old Jones is relishing the opportunity of going head to head with the undisputed No 1 fly half in the world, Dan Carter in Saturday's first Test.

"It's great to play against the best and when you do that you want to make the most of the opportunity," he said.

"It's a good test, not only of your rugby ability, but your personality as well. I'm really looking forward to the challenge. As rugby players, you want to play against the best players and the best teams. That's the opportunity we have on Saturday.

"You look forward to certain games and get excited about certain games. This is definitely one of those. It's brilliant. It would be huge, an awesome achievement, if we get a result" he said. "These are the places where you want to come and win.

"The first time I came here was in 2003. We lost heavily that time. We were a young squad and it was a massive transitional period in Welsh rugby.

"Then in 2005 I came out here with the Lions. It obviously wasn't a successful tour in terms of the result, but I enjoyed the whole experience. It's a big test for us, away from home in New Zealand. If we can implement our game-plan here, we can implement it anywhere."

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